First of all, if you haven't entered my giveaway, go enter it now! :) Next, let me just say how happy I am to have my camera cord back! YAY! Ok, onto the mani!
I am impressing myself with remembering to take pictures throughout the manicure process! Woo-hoo! When the husband and I went to Monster Jam in February, I knew I needed some awesome nails to go with our outfits (yes, we dressed up!)! He wore a blue and red plaid shirt so I used that for my nail inspiration. Here's what I ended up with:
However, I did this before the blog, so I decided to recreate it for you guys with some summery colors! Whatever color you want to be the middle stripe is the color you begin with. I chose Julep Courteney and polished on two coats.
Let your base coat dry for a good amount of time. Then, using scotch tape, cut the size you want your middle stripe to be. Be sure you stick the tape to your hands several times before you place it on your nail to prevent peeling! :) Smooth out any bubbles in the tape. Stick the tape to all of your nails so you aren't fiddling with tape with wet nails!
Choose your next color and polish it over your nail and the tape. I used Zoya Shelby!
Polish one nail at a time and immediately pull the tape off. If it doesn't come off absolutely perfect, it's ok! You can cover up most imperfections with the striping tape!
Finish the rest of your nails in the same fashion! You can see I had an uneven line on my index finger and middle finger, but I covered it with striping tape just fine!
Get the striping tape of your choice. I used silver.
I always start with the vertical stripes. Put the tape along the border of the two colors on the side where you have more of the second color. Does that make sense? For example, on my middle finger, there was more pink on the right, so I placed the striping tape on the right side of the green stripe. Then, place another piece of tape right next to the first piece so you have two vertical pieces of tape on your nail. Then, do two horizontal stripes wherever you fancy! I like to alternate between the top of my nail and the bottom of my nail! :) Yes, I do this all by myself with no assistance! It might frustrate you at first, but you'll get better and better at it, I promise! When you're done, you'll have striping tape tails all over the place!
Clip the tails off as close to the edge of your nail as you can. I use angled nail clippers and they are wonderful! And Viola! Plaid nails! Finish up with a thick topcoat to keep that tape firmly in place! I can usually get a striping tape manicure to last 4-5 days! Enjoy! :)
And finally, my little window thief! :)
lovely manicure and thanks for the tutorial!
ReplyThanks! :)
I need striping tape. Now.
ReplyI just ordered a bunch! When I get them, I'll send you one to try and see how you like it!